High-water mark
676.5488
career-best overall
94.0% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 676.5488 at The Kansas Smithfield Guinea Pig — 94.0% of a perfect 720.
- Master
- Jul 22, 2016
HEAD COUNTRY II
HEAD COUNTRY II is a competition barbecue team with 9 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2017. Their best overall finish is 14th of 29 at the Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (2013). They are ranked #3531 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1492
peak 1502 · rated over 9 contests
Contests
9
in the data
First seen
Mar 8, 2013
latest Sep 15, 2017 · 4.5 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
0% of 9 contests
Avg finish
top 63%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
653.20 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 640.40 (+12.80)
Walk rate
56%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±28.05
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 160.94 · weakest Brisket (157.95)
Road miles
1,800
across 9 mapped stops · furthest 411 mi
Schedule strength
53%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1568)
Master avg
640.40 / 720
9 Master contests · 0 GCs
Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)
| Year | Series | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 ↗ | Master | #1890 (115 pts) | #1945 (115 pts) | #1460 (190 pts) | #1937 (115 pts) | #1623 (155 pts) |
| 2016 ↗ | Master | #2274 (60 pts) | #2353 (60 pts) | #2349 (60 pts) | #2326 (60 pts) | #2345 (60 pts) |
| 2015 ↗ | Master | #1467 (168 pts) | #1760 (123 pts) | #1124 (288 pts) | #1209 (263 pts) | #1390 (193 pts) |
| 2013 ↗ | Master | #1325 (184 pts) | #1244 (224 pts) | #1210 (244 pts) | #1656 (144 pts) | #1460 (164 pts) |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to HEAD COUNTRY II, each with one reason worth a look.
137 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#3,514 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1493
1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to HEAD COUNTRY II)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team HEAD COUNTRY II has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#3,556 of the rated field
- Contests
- 108
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 21%
- Peak
- 1569
1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to HEAD COUNTRY II)
They've been 1569 at their best, 77 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Head-to-head#3,561 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 33%
- Peak
- 1516
Careers of much the same size, 9 contests to 9, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#3,517 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1510
Level with HEAD COUNTRY II on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#3,544 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 11%
- Peak
- 1516
Their last contest in the data was back in 2014, 3 years before HEAD COUNTRY II's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#3,528 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1493
They turned up 6 years after HEAD COUNTRY II did, first appearing in 2019.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUFFALO'S BBQ | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| LITTLE PIG TOWN BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| BUTCHER BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 175.4172 | 146.2854 | 160.94 | top 59% |
| Pork Ribs | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 168.0116 | 136.5712 | 160.82 | top 51% |
| Pork | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 172 | 145.1432 | 160.69 | top 60% |
| Brisket | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 169.1428 | 142.2854 | 157.95 | top 58% |
“Calls” = top-10 category finishes (getting called to the stage). Scores here are the final weighted totals KCBS publishes; per-criterion appearance/taste/tenderness marks aren’t in the public results feed.
By field size and state
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 6 | 0 | top 64% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 60% |
More numbers
Busiest season
2015
4 contests
Contests a season
2.3
across 4 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
OK
5 of 9 contests · 5 states in all
Contests visited
9
a different one every time
Opponents faced
288
finished ahead 149 times, behind 216
Longest layoff
1.9 yrs
Apr 5, 2013 → Mar 6, 2015
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20171 milestone
- Most recent contest Cherokee Strip BBQ Cook-Off
20162 milestones
- Career-best overall score676.5488 The Kansas Smithfield Guinea Pig
- Peak power rating (1502) The Kansas Smithfield Guinea Pig
20152 milestones
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score659.3484 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
- Career-best single call (Chicken)175.4172 Bixby BBQ'N Blues Festival
20132 milestones
- First tracked contest Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
- First call Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +7.5 | Bixby BBQ'N Blues Festival | May 1, 2015 |
| +3.6 | The Kansas Smithfield Guinea Pig | Jul 22, 2016 |
| +2.8 | Cherokee Strip BBQ Cookoff | Sep 18, 2015 |
| +1.3 | Stillwater Elks Lodge Blazathon | Apr 3, 2015 |
| +1.2 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour | Mar 8, 2013 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -11.5 | Stillwater Elks 25th Annual Blazathon | Apr 5, 2013 |
| -9.1 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour | Jul 28, 2017 |
| -2.9 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour | Mar 6, 2015 |
| -0.5 | Cherokee Strip BBQ Cook-Off | Sep 15, 2017 |
Scores over time (% of a perfect score — tap a meat to add it)
Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)
Where they finish (overall)
Best vs average (by meat)
How entries end (by meat)
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 80% | 89.7% | 89% |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 61% | 94% | 94% |
| 2015 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 53% | 91.6% | 90.3% |
| 2013 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 67% | 87.9% | 83.6% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 15, 2017 | Cherokee Strip BBQ Cook-Off Ponca City, OK | 25 / 38 (635.9316) | 25 (161.7256) | 23 (159.9888) | 26 (159.9428) | 28 (154.2744) |
| Jul 28, 2017 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Ankeny, IA | 28 / 30 (645.6916) | 30 (151.9656) | 12 (168.0116) | 26 (161.7488) | 17 (163.9656) |
| Jul 22, 2016 | The Kansas Smithfield Guinea Pig Desoto, KS | 30 / 49 (676.5488) | 27 (170.8688) | 39 (166.2400) | 26 (170.2972) | 25 (169.1428) |
| Sep 18, 2015 | Cherokee Strip BBQ Cookoff Ponca City, OK | 17 / 32 (652.5024) | 19 (164) | 24 (155.9884) | 9 (169.6912) | 15 (162.8228) |
| May 1, 2015 | Bixby BBQ'N Blues Festival Bixby, OK | 27 / 81 (655.3372) | 4 (175.4172) | 33 (162.8688) | 54 (158.7884) | 38 (158.2628) |
| Apr 3, 2015 | Stillwater Elks Lodge Blazathon Stillwater, OK | 19 / 34 (634.8456) | 24 (153.1200) | 7 (165.7600) | 26 (155.4400) | 14 (160.5256) |
| Mar 6, 2015 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Shreveport, LA | 20 / 29 (659.3484) | 24 (162.2628) | 11 (166.8456) | 4 (172) | 20 (158.2400) |
| Apr 5, 2013 | Stillwater Elks 25th Annual Blazathon Stillwater, OK | 45 / 52 (570.2852) | 32 (146.2854) | 45 (136.5712) | 35 (145.1432) | 40 (142.2854) |
| Mar 8, 2013 | Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Westworth Village, TX | 14 / 29 (633.1422) | 8 (162.8570) | 6 (165.1426) | 22 (153.1428) | 18 (151.9998) |